Urgent action needs to be taken to address the climate and road safety crises
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Ban Dangerous Wasteful Cybertrucks

Posted by 832sc on January 21, 2023

Like the other huge expensive pickups that automakers are focusing on, the Cybertruck will be dangerous to people walking, rolling, cycling and driving. It will also have high manufacturing GHG emissions and be a general waste of energy and resources taking them away from the badly needed electrification of buses and the trucks needed to move goods. Especially in the short term, this could actually increase GHG emissions.

The prototype was larger than full size pickups from Ford, Dodge and GM. Musk has indicated that production Cybertrucks will be pretty much that size. It is likely that the Cybertruck will not be sold European and Australian as it does not comply with pedestrian safety standards.

From Why the Tesla Cybertruck won’t be legal in Europe by Ethan Jupp of Motoring Research:

“The front of the vehicle must not be stiff,” explains Stefan Teller, expert at SGS-TUV Saar GmbH.

“The bumper and bonnet must be able to absorb energy to protect the pedestrians,” meaning those “strong modifications to the basic structure,” would be necessary. Teller follows that for type approval, the Cybertruck would need to be compliant with 50 to 60 different regulations.

Looking back to the reveal of the Cybertruck, much was made of how stiff and strong its rolled stainless steel structure and panels were. Great for sledgehammers, but potentially deadly for the occupants and unwitting pedestrians…

The additional weight is not the only safety problem with large electric vehicles as David Zipper writes in Slate:
Even with heavy batteries, these vehicles’ electric powertrains allow them to accelerate unusually quickly. Chevrolet, for instance, touts its “Wide Open Watts Mode” that allows the Chevy Blazer EV, an SUV, to accelerate from zero to 60 in under four seconds—a speed that is comparable to popular muscle cars like the Dodge Charger and Ford Mustang. A Tesla Model X Plaid is even more powerful, reaching 60 mph in two and a half seconds—faster than any other SUV on the market.

Car companies are touting these acceleration rates as a selling point, which is ominous. Although supercharged pick-up speeds serve no practical purpose, they create real danger for other road users—especially those on foot or in a wheelchair who have scant time to get out of the way.


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We call on the federal government to ban the sale of SUVs and large pickup trucks until and unless safety and environmentally problems are addressed. Specially, government regulations must mandate:

  1. safer lower front end designs and other measures eliminating the risk people of walking, cycling, rolling, or occupying other vehicles being killed or seriously injured
  2. significantly lighter vehicles decreasing manufacturing and operating GHG emissions enough to address the climate emergency; decreasing harmful tire and brake dust emissions; and enabling rapid fleet electrification 
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